Ball-bearing.



E. OLD F IELD. BALL BEARING.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11,1913.

1,1'79, 135. Patented Apr. 11, 1916.

,4 TTOR/VEY WITNESSES.

. UNITED STATES PATENT orrioE' '1 EDWIN OLDFIELD, or NORWICH, CONNECTICUT.

BALL-BEARING.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN OLDFIELD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Norwich, in the county of New London and State of Connecticut, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inBall- Bearings, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention has for its particular object the improvement of that type of ball hearings in which the balls are suitably spaced apart by so-called separators which latter are located with respect to the Said balls by means of a cage formed of rings or plates between-which the said separators are are clamped together, a cage-like structure mounted.

Briefly described, my said mprovement Specification of Letters Patent.

consists of washer-like separators, interposed between the balls, each of said separators being hung centrally, and loosely on the'pins or rivets that connect the saidrings or plates in such manner that each separator is free to adjust itsel f to the varying positions assumed'by the balls on either side of said separator.

My improvement is clearly illustrated by the annexed drawings, Figure 1 being a side view of a cage, having separatorsmounted therein, by my present improved means. Fig. 2 is a relatively enlarged View of a portion of one of the cage rings having assembled thereon, three balls and two separators. Fig. 3 is an outer edge view of the portions of the two cage rings with two balls, and an interposed separator, mounted between said rings. Fig. 4-is a viewof one of the said separators.

Referring to these drawings, the letter a indicates a plurality of balls, located between two opposing rings 6 and c, said balls .being suitably spaced apart by washer-like separators d; the balls and separators being arranged in such close relation to each other that portions of each ball lie within the opening of the adjacent separators and so that, when the described elementary parts are assembled, and the two ring members is-provided which may be used between the concentric outer and inner raceways of ball bearings of the type. now commonly used. The said separators, or certain of them, are drilled diametrically as at e, to receive rivets, .or screws, 9 which serve, not only to' space apart and clamp the two ring memsupport the separators pivotally, so that Patented Apr.- 11, 1916. Application filed November 17, 1913 Serial No. 801,330. I

hers bc, together, but more particularly to they may rock freely upon said pivots'and" thus adjust themselves to any'deflection, or tendency to disarrangement on the part of the balls; especially when the complete ball bearing structure is operating under heavy loads thus overcoming in a large degree any frictional resistance due to the rolling contact of the balls with .the said separators.

So faras I am familiar with this type of ball bearings, it has been more or less common to provide separators (for the balls) that are either non-pivotally mounted between opposing rings (to which rings the said separators are rigidly secured or in other instances the separators {have been I loosely located between the balls; the opposmg ring members being in some cases dispensed with; In the rigidly secured type of separators an objectionable degree of friction results from the deflection of the balls 1 when under a load and, in the loosely mount-I ed type of separators, there is a tendency on the part of said separators to cramp and bind between the two adjacent balls. 7

In my present improved form of separators the said separators rock on their respective pivots, to follow any deflection, or disarrangement, of the balls but are at all times, suitably s aced apart, so that the balls always have su cient clear space in which to rotate. My described construction also pro?- vides a cage-like structure that is complete in itseli and is not dependent upon the outer raceway to prevent the escape of the balls radially, in other words, the balls are retained in their respective positions between the side rings by the over-lapping separators. By thus pivoting the separators on the rivets which connect the two ring members, each ball is located in a housing of its.

own (between two of the separators) so that,

rators is in the fact, already clearly set forth, Q

that the said separators are free to rock on their pivots and thus adjust themselves to any deflection of the balls.

Having thus described my invention, I

the form of a short hollow cylinder pivoted diametrically upon each of said pivot members, the pair of balls on opposite sides of 15 each separator member extending Well into the open ends of the cylindrical separator close to said pivot member whereby a practieally full complement of balls closely spaced from each other may be utilized.

EDWIN OLDFIELD. Witnesses: v

FRANK H. ALLEN: ELsIE P. GRUNERT. 

